Dehydrating

I don't think I've discussed Dehydrating.... at least not on this blog. I taught a class last Tuesday and had a wonderful time experimenting with new items that I have dehydrated before. The following are the notes I handed out at class. The notes went with the lecture so I hope they make sense. Please feel free to ask for more details. You really missed a great lecture, if I do say so myself ~ Karin

DEHYDRATING

What is dehydrating?

Dehydrating, or drying, is the process of removing water from a material. The key is to remove enough water to prevent microbial growth for safety.

You can do this!

Drying food does take some know-how and a little trial and error but you can do it. Rule of thumb - it is better to over-dry a food than to under-dry it.

How you do it?

A simple dehydrator: Trays, Heat source, Fan, Size

Discussion of what can be done.

·         Applies, perfect starting point

·         Avocado, meats and fish not always suited because of high levels of fat. That being said, some veges, meats, fish need to be fully cooked before they’re dried. (compare old to new books)

·         Some need to be blanched - heat helps improve speed of drying

·         Some fruit (berries, apples, etc.) come with a waxy peel or finish, that’s to keep the moisture in. So these fruits need a pretreatment to break the coating.

·         Some berries need to be pureed because of their small segments. I learned the hard way.

·         Treat with ascorbic acid or fruit fresh to prevent browning.

·         Leather

·         Vegetables - if you’re not going to eat the vegetables raw normally, then you would cook it before you dry it.

·         Onion and garlic - outside or in garage.

·         Powders - cucumber

·         Jerky - you can experiments with flavors, but you need to make sure the jerky you make get preserved properly so that it is safe to eat. Lean cuts are best to make it last. The higher fat cuts do not dry property. The fat goes rancid and spoils the jerky. When drying blot the fat off with paper towels. With that being said they now recommend you cook your meat before drying it.

Storing the items

Always best to keep them:

in a cool, dry location, and

out of direct sunlight to maximize their shelf life.

Using the products

Some dried foods are typically eaten in their dry form. Fruit leather, berries, fruit.

Re-hydration - Some need to be soaked in water, some need to be heated.

References:

Utah State Extension Service

http://farmgal.tripod.com/Dehydrate.html

How do I dry? - http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/dry.html

http://dehydrate2store.com/